CO2 Emissions Rising Worldwide

Scientists say emissions of carbon dioxide, or CO2, have been steadily rising since the Industrial Revolution. Between 1991 and 2005, the emissions levels rose worldwide from nearly 22 billion tons to about 27 billion. CO2 is a major contributor to the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.

Mobile News Consumption Rising, Along With Smartphone Ownership

Elizabeth Ashworth, an assistant dean at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism, says she's following referrals from her social media sites to find out what's happening.

Ashworth is part of a trend highlighted in the Pew Research Center's report on U.S. smartphone use in 2015. It notes that 64 percent of U.S. adults own a smartphone -- up from 35 percent in 2011. And 68 percent of these smartphone owners use their phones to at least occasionally follow breaking news.

State of Media: Social Media Referrals Driving Traffic

Journalist Elaine Povich's take on the state of the media? Social media are driving a lot of traffic -- and the algorithms generated by social sites are dictating what she's reading on a daily basis. "Uncle Phil's" choices are becoming her daily playlist.



What else could be taken away from the Pew Research Center's “State of the News Media” report? Mobile visits are outpacing desktop ones for most of the top 50 news sites and their associated apps. For instance, for top news entity Yahoo-ABC News, there were 93.2 million mobile visitors in January 2015, vs. 59 million desktop visitors. Only seven of the top 50 news sites and associated apps had more desktop traffic than mobile in January 2015. MSN News, the BBC and CNET.com led this group. But desktop visits were still important because of time spent on the site, the report notes. For 25 of the top 50 outlets, desktop visitors spent more time per visit than those visiting on their mobile device.